Teaching Cosima
by RastonCMPG
Summary: Cosima had never believed in the one, never bought into the fantasy that there was someone for everyone. She had always been sure that there was nobody meant for her. That was, of course, until her life collided with Miss Cormier's, and the beautiful french woman taught her different. Just a little AU fic I've been working on to get over the ending of Season 3... Enjoy R.
1. Chapter 1

Cosima had never believed in "The One." She had never, and could never have thought that there was one person for everyone. That was, of course, until that awful September day; that horrible morning when the sky was some kind of hazy shade of fall or winter, that morning when Cosima's breath danced in front of her face as she walked into South San Francisco High School and bumped into Miss Cormier. Oh, how the young teacher had riled the adolescent's hormone filled body, the bio-chem student barely able to stutter out an apology as she sent the teacher's files cascading from her hands and down the corridor.

"Oh mon dieu! Tu est une fille tres stupide." The french woman shouted angrily, shrinking to the floor as she gathered the few files in her immediate reach and began to arrange them into some kind of order. Cosima was breathless from the collision, but had no idea why. Although the girl could feel anger bubbling somewhere deep in her, some kind of underlying hatred of being called stupid, the blush filling her cheeks, the fog on her glasses and the words caught in her throat as she watched the unidentified french woman grabbing her things from the squeaky, waxed floor were much harder to ignore.

"Uh-O-Oh, my god. I'm s-so sorry ma'am. Miss uh, Miss?" Cosima spluttered, realising that the other woman's face was unrecognizable.

"Cormier," The blonde answered, looking up at the young girl stood before her. "Would you mind giving me a hand?" The woman spoke in slightly disjointed english, with a heavy accent. It would have been fair to assume that she had only recently graduated from university, and had been in an English-speaking country for even less time.

"Of course," Cosima answered, slightly more confident than before, crouching to pick up some of the further away stray papers, she tried to gulp down all the air she could, but found her breath catching due to the close proximity to the teacher. As they stood, their heads knocked together , which sent Cosima falling backwards, landing heavily on her rump with a loud cracking noise.

"Merde." She joked, realizing that the french woman before her was suddenly much harder to focus on.

"You're mocking me?" The teacher asked bluntly, Cosima assumed that she crossed her arms at this point, she could tell by the change in intonation of the french woman's voice, but she was too blurry to see properly.

"No, no of course not. It was just a joke, Miss, honestly." Cosima reassured her. "Seriously though..." she paused for a few seconds to pull out some mangled spectacle frames from beneath her. "my fucking glasses. Not again." She sighed and stood up, rubbing her sore head and waving her other hand around to find something to support herself with. The french woman stood watching this for a few seconds before it occurred to her to help, she extended an arm, unbeknownst to Cosima, who continued to feel around until the teacher was forced to grab her hand.

"What was it you said your name was, Mouse?" She asked bluntly, but Cosima could still tell that there was some kindness hidden deep in her voice, her tone was, admittedly, a lot kinder than the one she had previously been using.

"I didn't, yet... It's Cosima: Cosima Niehaus." The dreadlocked girl answered an internal shudder ran through her at her own use of her father's surname following her first. "I would shake your hand, but I can't see it; I'm having a bit of a Velma moment." She continued, staring into the general direction of where she assumed the french woman must be.

"Cosima Niehaus? It sounds familiar." The teacher pondered for a moment or two before she realised who she was talking to. "Oh, Mouse! You're the girl who took a ridiculous amount of extra credit to apply to MiT aren't you. The one with the grades?" The blonde seemed to get excited once she realised who Cosima was. "I read your term-paper on DNA Helicase, and a 5th grade piece in your file about evolutionary development. You're remarkable. For your age, Mon dieu!" The teacher praised, her eyes glittering as she spoke, leaving a very confused brunette staring back at her.

"The grades, what?" She paused for a few seconds. "Thankyou, Miss Cormier. That's very nice of you to say, but I just get science. It's not something I do on purpose."

"I suppose you aren't so stupid after all, Mouse." The teacher paused for a few minutes. "How is your french?"

"Merde." Cosima answered, a small smirk on her lips.

"Well, maybe a few lunchtimes a week, if neither of us is busy, you can come and see me for some private tutoring... You'll need the good grades if you want to get into a good college." She paused for a few seconds, looking away from the dread-locked teen. "I actually have a free period until lunch to settle into my new classroom, you could come now, unless you have a class." The french woman realized she was rambling, and came to a gradual stop.

"I actually have a few hours free; I'm given personal study time as I have already taken most of my SATs, I could've graduated last year, but I wanted to stay at High School for a while, I wasn't ready to leave my mom just yet..." Cosima stopped herself. "...And that was way too much information. I'm sorry. Anyway, I would love to polish up my french, I might need it someday." She finished with a smile.

"Would you mind showing me to the empty biology lab that's meant to be mine? Nobody showed me or gave me a tour or anything, I've just been wandering around awkwardly for 15 minutes, but I have no idea where I'm meant to be going." The blonde teacher asked, watching as Cosima shifted her grip slightly, she hadn't been expecting that this beautiful french woman was interested in biology, and she held her breath when she heard it, afraid that if she opened her mouth then the butterflies would escape from her stomach and fill the entire corridor, perhaps the entire city.

"Of course I can show you, but did you say you were looking for the science department, biology I mean, I had kind of assumed you would be a french teacher."

"You shouldn't assume, Mouse... It makes an ass out of you and me. Besides, I can do both quite easily, you're not the only one with killer grades." Cosima couldn't see it, but she would have sworn on any bible that a smirk appeared on her new teachers face.

"Would you mind if we took a little detour on the way to your lab? I think I have some spare glasses in there or something, unless it was my spares that I just sent to spectacle-heaven..." Cosima paused for a few seconds, pondering whether that was the weirdest thing she had said so far today, she decided it probably wasn't. "Anyway, this whole school-day process would go a lot smoother if i was able to see anything, don't you agree?"

"I would say so, yes." Came the taller woman's reply. "I presume the locker rooms are straight up this corridor and either right or left."

"Probably." Cosima answered, a cheeky grin starting on her lips as the teacher pulled her forward playfully.

* * *

After several minutes of searching for Cosima's locker, the younger girl having to tell her teacher the combination because she couldn't see the padlock, and the discovery that she did have a pair of glasses in her locker, and that they happened to be covered in glitter and feathers, which triggered the sore memory of how they got that way, the pair finally ended up in a lab, sitting side by side, hunched over a french textbook.

"So, Mouse, when speaking in french there are two conjunctions we use: the first being Avoir, meaning to have, and the second being Être, meaning to be." The blonde placed her hand on Cosima's side of the table as she turned to face her student. "It's pretty simple once you get the hang of it."

"Yeah..." Cosima mumbled under her breath. "Just like molecular fucking astrophysics."

"la science de fusée est vraiment pas que la confusion une fois que vous comprenez le concept de la pression dynamique maximale" Miss Cormier answered, shifting her gaze back to the page she had been reading from, her blonde ringlets falling around her face like a curtain.

"If you say so." Came Cosima's reply, she nudged the teacher gently with her .

"Your french actually isn't as bad as you think, Mouse." Miss Cormier praised, a wide smile forming on her lips.

"Merci." the teenager answered, turning to face the older woman. "Miss Cormier, may I ask why you keep calling me mouse?"

"There are many reasons for this." the french woman answered "Mostly because you remind me of one of the mice from the nursery rhyme; the one where they all get their tails chopped off."

"Uh, thanks I guess. Is that meant to be a compliment?"

"Perhaps, or perhaps it's an inside joke we have about your impaired vision." The french woman smiled, which forced more and more butterflies down Cosima's throat and into her stomach, which she was sure must be at it's capacity by now. Cosima paused for a few moments to compose herself

"You have a leaf in your hair." The brunette blurted out awkwardly.

 _"Oh, would you mind getting it for me?" The blonde almost breathed out her reply, nearly silent, but not quite. Cosima gingerly extended her arm and lightly brushed her fingers through the teacher's soft curls, trying to remember to breath. The butterflies filled her whole body, and for a few moments she was afraid that she might take off, though she knew it to be scientifically improbable. She picked out the leaf carefully, and let it drop to the floor. She drew her fingers slowly back across her teacher's face, her fingertips lightly brushing against the french woman's skin. She felt the blonde tilt her head towards her hand, her breath hot and welcome against the skin. The teacher suddenly jerked forwards, her lips crashing down on the teenager's. From that point onwards, neither would have been able to explain what happened next, just an impossible magnetic force between their mouths. Cosima's hand was entangled in her teacher's hair, and Miss Cormier's tongue was entangled with Cosima's._

The french woman snapped out of her daydream and cleared her throat, sure that her face must be flushed at what she had just envisioned; this was not who Delphine Cormier was. She was not a pervert, and she definitely wasn't a lesbian for that matter. She had no idea what was going on, just that she couldn't allow this new found friendship to go any further. She could not lose her job over a frivolous would-be crush on a student - a _female_ student. Why, then, was she finding it so hard not to fall into Cosima's deep, brown eyes? She realized that she must have been silent for a fair few minutes now, and tried to stop her mind from racing so fast.

"Oh." Was all she could manage, she ran her fingers through her hair rougly, knocking out the dried leaf. "Did I get it?"


	2. Chapter 2

Delphine was taking her first class, although she had years of practice during her teaching degree, the pressure of all these young people's lives on her shoulders was still enough to make her hands clammy. Taking a single breath to steady herself, the french woman turned towards the blackboard and began to draw a diagram of an enzyme.

"I trust you know what this is." She said calmly, turning back towards the senior class with a smile. She was met with some hushed mumbling and the majority of her students turning away from her eye contact. A few of the higher level students at the front of the class smiled smugly or nodded to themselves quietly. One solitary hand raised above the rest of the student's heads, and Delphine felt her breath hitch as she met the eyes of a particular bespectacled girl. "Uh, yes, Cosima." Delphine tried to take more calming breaths, but she couldn't force the air down her throat. After a few seconds she realized that she had been staring at her student for some time, and ignoring the scientific knowledge that Cosima was imparting. The french woman bounced her eyes quickly across the room, before settling back into comfortable eye contact with Cosima, and letting a tiny smile dance across her lips. She didn't need to have heard what Cosima said, the look in the teens eyes, and the warm, comfortable feeling in the pit of Delphine's stomach as she looked at her was enough to let her know that the student had enough knowledge of biology to be trusted in pretty much whatever she said. "Yes, thankyou, Miss Niehaus. That's correct. Would you like to come up here and add some labels to the diagram?"

"Sure" Cosima nodded at this and placed her hands on the sides of her chair. The small teen suddenly pushed herself up and jumped over the back of the chair, walking calmly up to the blackboard. She took the chalk from her teacher's hand, smiling widely as their hands brushed against one-anothers', smirking slightly as she heard her teacher's sharp breath and saw the weak smile that the french woman was trying to plaster across her face. Cosima glided forward to the blackboard and labelled the diagram, _"hydrophobic head, hydrophillic tail"_ she thought to herself. She turned back in a matter of seconds to face her classmates, modestly proud of herself. She walked back to the chair and sat down just as the bell went for lunch.

"Okay class, you're dismissed" The blonde teacher said calmly, letting out a small sigh of relief at the knowledge that her first class was finished. She smiled politely at her students as they filed out of the room, tapping Cosima's shoulder to get the attention of the young girl. "Cosima, I have some study notes I thought you might find useful for how do you say? Merde... Extra credit" The french woman looked back at her with a beaming smile on her face.

"Wow, thanks." Cosima said, circling her teacher's desk comfortably. Delphine watched her for a few moments, before scolding herself and looking away... This shouldn't be happening to her. Nothing could ever happen between Cosima and her. It just couldn't, and she had to restrain herself from catching feelings for her student. "Do you think you could talk me through some of this stuff about Homeostasis?"

"Uh, sure... Take a seat." Delphine instructed her student, gesturing towards the desk closest to her own. "Homeostasis is the.. uh.. process the body goes through to keep control of internal conditions, such as temperature or the conditions of blood."

"Right, homeostasis is staying the same. Got it." The dreadlocked girl took a quick look at her teacher, and was honestly taken aback by the angelic beauty she found looking back at her. However lame it might be, she had to admit to herself that she had a crush on her teacher. It's not like she wasn't out or anything, it was just kind of cliche, and because of that, definitely not Cosima's style. She made a mental note to talk to Helena and Sarah about this after she had finished her study session with the french woman.

"Okay," Delphine smiled at the student. "Is there anything else that you want to ask about? I tried to make the easiest possible annotations, but it is a text book that I used during my masters degree. I was offered a copy in English from a guy I went to university with, and I thought of you."

"Wow, I don't know what to say. I'm honored thank you. Would you mind if I had a little read of this at home and got back to you about that in a few days?" Delphine laughed at this "What? What did I say?"

"Don't you think you're forgetting something Cosima?" She was met by a very confused looking girl. "Tomorrow is Christmas eve?"

"Oh, Shit, is it?" The american answered. "My mom and I don't usually celebrate christmas... My dad kind of left a few christmasses ago." Cosima watched as her teacher raised a hand to her mouth in horror.

"Oh, Cosima I'm so sorry."

"It's okay, I'm over that no-good sperm donor anyway, my mom is my only parent as far as I'm concerned. How are you spending christmas?"

"I'm kinda not either. Anyway, don't tell anyone that I'm saying this, but I'll give you my personal number, that way you can text me if you need any help. I trust you enough to keep that to yourself." The french woman smiled at Cosima and wrote down her number. "Just, how do you kids say, drop me a text if you need anything. Anything at all" She finished with a wide and stunning smile. Cosima laughed at this and stood up to exit the room. "Joyeux Noel, mouse"

"Merry Christmas, Delphine." Cosima said sassily, testing the water to see how the french woman reacted to the use of her first name.

"You're testing me, Cosima." She laughed. "Just try not to get caught calling me that, I don't want to lose my job because I'm found to be flirting with a particularly adorable student."

"Flirting?" Cosima asked, shocked. "What? Are you flirting with me?"

"FUCK."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N - I'm so so so sorry that this is so late, but I've been so distracted with school and home and blergh... I promise I'll try harder in the future. If I beg, will you accept this extremely belated Christmas special and my sincerest apologies? Please? Anyway, I hope you enjoy this, please review if you have the time, all comments are useful to me :) ~ R.**

It had been two days since Delphine's slip of the tongue, and in all honesty, neither the french woman herself or Cosima could get it off of their mind. Delphine had been pacing the floor of her small apartment for almost 48 hours now, stopping only for a few meals and a meager 3 hours of sleep. Cosima, on the other hand, had been stretched out on the mustard-yellow, leather couch of her mom's living room, staring off into space with a beer in her hand and a text book laying comfortably in her lap.

"Merde! Qu'est ce que j'ai fait? Qu'est ce que j'ai fait! Je vais perdre mon travail pour cela. Oh non non non mon dieu non" The french woman yelled to the empty room, her feet still pacing back and forth on the stained wood floor as she pushed curled strands of dirty blonde hair out of her face. "Merde." She put her head in her hands and swore over and over again to herself. After a few moments of silent sobs and muttered swearing, Delphine heard the jolly sound of her doorbell chiming. She took a deep breath and walked over to the door, opening it with a smile - carol singers from a few floors above her. She stood in her doorway and listened to them politely for a few songs, before handing them what must have been an assortment of french and american money, excusing herself and returning to her pacing once more. She had only taken a few more steps when her phone began to buzz on the arm of her couch. She walked over to it curiously. "Oh la la quel est-il maintenant?"She picked up the buzzing cell phone and saw an unknown caller ID. She assumed it must have been a friend from college or back home, as she had no contacts in America as of yet.

"Allo, bonjour, Delphine Cormier. Qui suis-je parlais avec?" She asked skeptically.

"Uh... Hi... Miss Cormier? It's Cosima." The reply came somewhat hesitantly from the other line.

"Cosima?" Delphine asked, feeling a lump beginning to form in her throat. She had been hoping that the student had somehow lost her number or forgotten about the french woman's offer of extra help all together. No such luck.  
"Yes," Cosima answered politely, furrowing her brow and pushing up her glasses as she spoke. "Cosima Niehaus... From school. Please don't say you forgot about the extra credit stuff you gave me, I kind of need help."

"Yes, Cosima of course. I remember, I just wasn't expecting your call so soon"

"I just want to get this out of the way so I can develop my application to MiT." Cosima replied, not in a bragging fashion, but sincerely. As weird as it was for her to admit, Delphine had physically felt herself relax when she heard the girl's voice.

"Of course. What was it that you needed help with exactly?" The french woman replied, finally taking a seat on the couch she had been stood next to.

"Kind of all of it. Our old teacher was kind of a dweeb... We never covered any of this stuff." The teenager replied, her choice of language eliciting a giggle in the french woman. "Is there any chance we could meet up or something? I know it's short notice, and I understand that you must have plans with your girlfriend, so I don't mind waiting a few days. I'm really sorry to be an inconvenience to you."

"Girlfriend? Merde, Non! Mon Dieu Non Non" Delphine replied, with a slight chuckle in her voice. Cosima frowned at this, understanding that she must have misread the signals. Her teacher was straight. Fuck. "I can assure you, Cosima, I have no plans of the sort." The french woman continued. "If your mother would allow it, you may come to my apartment so we can discuss your work."

"I can?" Cosima couldn't keep the excitement from her voice, nor the huge smile beaming on her face, as the french woman confirmed and gave Cosima her address. They agreed to meet at Delphine's apartment in almost two hours, giving both of them time to prepare themselves for the 'casual' tutoring session that afternoon. As soon as they hung up their respective phones, Cosima dashed to her closet to pick out the most appropriate and mature outfit she could find for the occasion, before springing into the shower, while the french woman chose to collapse on her bed, finally at peace knowing that she would have a chance to rectify the situation between them privately, and able to get whatever sleep she could grab before her student arrived.

* * *

A few hours had passed since the end of their call when Cosima's car pulled into the parking lot of Delphine's apartment building. The brunette was, of course, over an hour late, but she had brought with her wine from what remained of her father's considerably expensive wine-cellar, which she hoped would some how soften the awkward blow of the inconvenience she had caused. She grabbed the wine bottle by the neck and exited the vehicle, walking over to the buzzers and finding the doorbell with Delphine's name next to it. She slid her hand over the french woman's beautiful cursive handwriting and smiled before pressing her doorbell. After a few seconds she heard a croaky, deep voice coming back at her through the speaker.

"Cosima? Mmmm okay, Come in." Cosima heard a differently pitched buzz before the clicking of the automatic door opening before her, allowing her entrance into the heart of the building. While walking up the flight of stairs towards the french woman's flat, Cosima pondered the drowsy tone of her french teacher's voice. She also pondered the many romantic, and, dare she say, sexual, outcomes she was hoping that this little study session would claim. Of course, she knew that this woman was not only straight, but her teacher and in no way attracted to her. Cosima wasn't stupid, she knew that nothing would come of this; she knew that it was another of her stupid straight girl crushes; she knew that it had been a misinterpretation, mistranslation or some kind of slip of Delphine's tongue when she told Cosima that she was flirting with her. A girl can dream though. After a few seconds, she reached the second floor and her teacher's front door. She pressed the bell and waiting for the french woman to answer.

"Merde." Delphine said sluggishly as she trudged towards the door. She licked her lips tiredly, and plastered a smile on her face as she answered the door. "Cosima, welcome. Merry Christmas, come in." She lead the teenager inside and closed the door behind her.

"Thankyou, Miss Cormier. I brought this from my dad's old wine cellar for you." The younger woman extended the bottle of wine in her hands to her teacher.

"Shit, Cosima. This stuff is good! I've only had it once before but wow! Let me get you a glass." The french woman turned and began to walk towards the kitchen, she took a few steps before spinning on her heels, and walking back towards Cosima. "On second thought, let me show you to the living room." She took Cosima's arm and led her to a very well furnished room. Cosima sat down on a gray-blue couch and smiled up at her teacher.

"Thankyou, Miss Cormier." She smiled.

"Oh, Cosima. I forgot, I cannot share this wonderful wine with you because of your stupid american laws." The dreadlocked teen placed her hand on the standing woman's knee.

"Nobody has to know. It's not like I've never been drunk before." She said, reassuring the blonde woman of her maturity.

"Cosima I'm sorry, but I could lose my job over this." Delphine pondered for a few moments. "I really don't know... Okay, one glass, that's all." She said, disappearing to the kitchen and returning a few minutes later with two wine glasses filled almost half way with red wine. Cosima gratefully took one of them, and kept her eyes on the french woman as she sat on the opposite end of the couch, just close enough that the teenager could smell her perfume, not close enough for her to be able to close the distance between them easily. She took a sip of the alcohol and tipped her body back slightly.

"Thankyou, Miss Cormier." The teacher smirked and moved closer to the girl, the alcohol in her system mixing up her already sleep muddled mind as she placed a hand on her student's thigh and squeezing.

"Please, Cosima, call me Delphine." She smiled. "Would you mind if we started your studying a bit later? I've had a rough couple of days." Cosima nodded yes in agreement.

"Of course, Delphine." She smiled. "You know, you can talk to me? I'm surprisingly trust worthy."

"I've actually been worried about what I said to you the last time we spoke." She said, slightly shakily, unable to meet the teenager's eyes. "You know I could lose my job, and possibly go to prison if anybody suspects that I have any kind of feelings for you."

"Don't worry." Cosima replied calmly, pulling the french woman into her embrace. "Nobody will suspect anything. There is nothing to suspect is there? I mean, of course you don't have any feelings for me. You're straight for a start." As she pulled away, she saw the deep crimson shade of her teacher's face. "Right, Delphine?" The french woman didn't answer, she simply couldn't. For some reason she couldn't bring herself to look into the teenager's eyes and lie to her face, the lump in her throat was so big that she was scared if it grew any bigger she would balloon out like a bullfrog. "Delphine." The french woman started to look anywhere but at Cosima. The student took a deep breath and used a finger to push the french woman's chin up so their eyes were forced to meet. "Delphine, anything you tell me in this room stays completely between us. I swear it on my life." She saw the look of guilt and admittance wash across her teacher's face as she spoke these words.

"In that case, I can't lie to you, Mouse. I have developed something for you, and it's feelings that don't seem to be going away, no matter how hard I try to suppress them." Small tears began to form in her eyes, as Cosima took her hands, and pulled her to a standing position.

"How would you feel if I told you that I've been feeling the same way about you? If I had been flirting back?" Cosima asked.

"Relieved, scared maybe. I don't know." Delphine stuttered, glad when it was finally her student's turn to speak.

"I guess we'll just have to find out then." Cosima smirked, pulling the french woman's head down and capturing her lips in a deep and passionate kiss. At first, Delphine seemed to resist her advance, but after half a moment, the french woman was moaning into the kiss, and sliding her tongue across the smaller woman's bottom lip, begging for entrance to her mouth. Cosima jumped into the air and wrapped her legs around her teacher's waist. The french woman took this and walked almost effortlessly to the wall, pushing the woman in her arms up against it - never breaking the lip lock - and ridding herself of her cardigan. Cosima's fingers fumbled when she unbuttoned the teacher's shirt. Within seconds, however, the offensive clothing was gone and thrown off into some unknown nether region of the french woman's apartment. The older woman struggled with Cosima's clothing, not wanting to break their kiss. "Just... Rip... it" Cosima breathed, her hands roaming up and down the side of her beautiful teacher's body. Delphine did as she was told, and Cosima was quickly rid of her garments, leaving them both pushed up against eachother in their undergarments.

"Bed?" Delphine quizzed huskily.

"Bed." Cosima agreed with a smirk, crashing her lips back down onto the french woman's. The tangy taste of the wine still on both of their now swollen lips, mixed with Delphine's natural aroma and the scent of lust surrounding both of them was intoxicating for her. She felt like a junkie getting a hit, and feared that if she couldn't get this hit again, it might break her. Of course she had no time to dictate these futile concerns. Cosima felt the support of Delphine's body give way, and her feet dropped back down onto the floor. Neither of them broke their ever deepening kiss though, as they staggered towards the bedroom, tripping over everything in their path until Delphine suddenly scooped the teen up bridal style, and carried her blindly towards her bedroom.

When they reached their destination, their kiss was broken for only a moment, as Delphine pushed some laundry and discarded garments from her bed, and pushed Cosima back onto it. The teenager grinned, pulling the french woman atop of her with a seductive giggle.


	4. Chapter 4

The sun streamed through Delphine's red drapes, casting an amber glow across her apartment - the day after, and a harsh reality brought with it. The blonde woke up suddenly, her head banging, not from a hangover, but from an intoxication of a different kind. She lifted a hand to her head, only to find the other trapped underneath a warm, soft body.

"Merde! Pas un autre stand d'une nuit . Quel est le problème avec vous , Delphine ?" She scolded herself in a harsh whisper. Not daring to find out who it was just yet. Her sleep-saturated mind forbade her to remember who it could possibly be sleeping next to her. The french woman let out a deep breath and tipped her head to the side, seeing only a sea of brunette dreadlocks spread across the pillow next to her, and the milky white, and decidedly naked, shoulders of her student. A wave of realization washed over Delphine. She knew that this should have never happened, it was so wrong. Somehow, though, she couldn't bring herself to regret this. Cosima was her student, sure, but there was no denying that this was more than just fucking. They made love, and dare she say it, she hoped it might happen again someday. She shouldn't have done it. She shouldn't say it, she definitely shouldn't feel it... but she did, and there was nothing to be done about that now, nothing except nuzzling into Cosima's back. The warmth of the teen's skin released all the tension in Delphine's body, she felt safe in the knowledge that she could forget about the repercussions for this, at least for a few hours. After a few seconds she felt Cosima stretched out, and heard the contented sighs of the waking girl.

Cosima woke up confused, in a strange bed, in a strange apartment, laying on something hard... someone's arm. She could feel someone burying their face in her back. She rolled over, catching sight of curled blonde hair. The events of the previous evening suddenly came flooding back to her.

"Well, I must say Delphine... There are ways to apologize for flirting with me, and then there's..." Cosima paused for a few seconds, trying to find the words to sum up the experience that they had just shared. "Well, that." She announced finally.

"I concur, Mouse, but _I must say_ that there's ways of gaining extra credit." She pause to place a soft, daring kiss on her student's lips. Cosima moaned into the kiss.

"Touché" The brunette smiled, returning Delphine's favor.

"But, your approach is much more favorable." The french woman laughed. "I hope you won't be expecting straight A's from now on... Not that you needed to screw me for those anyway."

"Screw you? Is that what I was doing?" Cosima asked playfully, rolling over once more to straddle the blonde, maybe you didn't get the vibes I was throwing out to you?" She leaned down for more kisses, smirking when the blonde moaned back in satisfaction. "Maybe you need to be reminded of them, Miss Cormier?" The french woman felt shivers run down her spine at these words, as cliché as it was, and a yearning deep in the pit of her stomach. Her eyes grew dark with seriousness of a moment or two, as she tilted her head.

"Don't tease me, Mouse." She almost whispered, her hands finding comfort in the bend of Cosima's legs.

"Who said anything about teasing?" The brunette answered quickly with a smirk.

* * *

Cosima sat on her teacher's couch, in a baggy T-shirt, belonging to who knows whom, it was definitely at least 5 sizes too big for Delphine, waiting for the french woman to return from her beverage run to the kitchen. The teenager was sat quietly, taking in her surroundings. The sophisticated french woman's apartment was anything but like her. Boxes with scribbled black sharpie labels, of course written in semi-legible french, were scattered everywhere, on the floor, on the coffee table, some were even on the adjacent arm chair. Cosima smirked at this. The walls were bare, save for a few degree certificates, which were framed and hanging near a muddled Ikea book shelf. The teen was so busy staring at her teacher's apartment, that she didn't see the french woman coming into the living room and sitting down next to her. She almost jumped out of her skin when she heard the sound of a mug of hot tea being placed in front of her.

"Oh, shit." She almost screamed, being surprisingly easy to scare. "Sorry, Delphine." She leaned across the couch to kiss the french woman, only to have her advances rejected as the blonde woman leaned back away from her. "Delphine, is there something wrong? What is it?"

"Cosima, we need to talk. I shouldn't have let this happen. I think it's best for both of us if you leave. The study notes you need are on the cabinet by the do-" She was cut off by a suddenly angry, tearful Cosima.

"What the fuck, Delphine?" She tried to gulp back the tears in her eyes, but she couldn't quite manage it, as a few of them fell.

"Cosima, this wasn't right. I could go to pri-"

"I don't give a fuck, Delphine. You can't deny what you feel for me forever you know. I was considering taking my early graduation for you." Delphine was breathless as she heard her student rant. She hadn't been expecting that this would be more than a hook-up for the teen.

"Mouse, please calm dow-"

"Don't fucking tell me what to do. Screw this. Screw your stupid extra credit, and screw you, you fucking bitch" and with that, the teenager was gone, crying her eyes out as she stormed out of the French woman's apartment in her foreign clothes, and away from the bubble of ambrosia she had just been in. Leaving Delphine to contemplate what she had done, and to bask in the undesired surreality of the moment.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N - I'm sorry it's been so long... again. I'm a busy person, I promise. Besides, these take way longer to write than they do to read. Please bare with me ~ R.**

Being back here.. Back at this desk... Back in this room... Back in this building, it all felt somehow wrong. Like she shouldn't be sat here. She should be sat on a comfortable couch, in a scruffy apartment. Sat next to a beautiful blonde french woman. Sat next to her lover, girlfriend - her wife? The future mother of her children maybe? No. She couldn't think like this, it was just a recipe for disaster. There was no use in Cosima imagining a life with Delphine. They'd known each other a few weeks at most, they'd had a drunken hookup that couldn't have happened, there could be nothing between them, nothing at all, yet there was. Something undeniable, that the young girl hadn't felt since... well, in a long time. But there was no use. So Cosima sat quietly, watching as her Biology teacher drew intricate diagrams of the cardiac system a few feet away from her, and tried to keep her eyes off of the blonde's ass. That ass that she had grabbed playfully only a few days ago. At the end of the lesson, Cosima packed her books and pens into her bag, purposely not meeting the gaze that was burning a hole into the back of her head, and strode comfortably towards the door, her head held high. And that was when she heard it. The sound she had been hoping against all odds to not hear - the strangled yelp of Delphine Cormier calling her name.

"Cosima?" the blonde almost asked - almost begged for a response from her student. "Cosima? Please talk to me." She begged again, taking a few steps towards the girl, whose back was still facing her. The younger of the two took a quick glance around to check that the room was empty, before closing the classroom door and turning back towards her teacher. She hadn't wanted to, but something about the blonde was just irresistible to her. Inevitable even.

"What is it, Miss Cormier?" She asked coldly, her face hardened and rough in an attempt to hold back the wild emotions coursing through her head at her proximity to the other woman.

"Cosima, please don't do this." Delphine begged once more, single tears beginning to appear under her eyes.

"Do what?" The teenager snapped, stalking towards the blonde, her hands on her hips. "Give you the most amazing night of your life, make you feel things you never thought you could and then take them away?" She asked angrily, continuing her verbal assault just seconds later, ignorant of the furious tears that started to make their way down her face "What shouldn't I do Delphine? Lead you on to think we had something, and then toss you aside moments later like a silly schoolgirl. I have feelings. Did that even occur to you? Did you even think about how you were going to make me feel? Did you even consider talking to me about it?" She threw her hands into the air, uncharacteristically angrily, before she realized how ridiculous this all must sound to this woman who she barely knew. Cosima took a few deep breaths before continuing. "I'm sorry, Delphine. I know that this is crazy. I know that I have no right to feel anything for you, that it's barely been a fortnight since we met, but I can't help the way I feel about you. Something clicked inside of me the day we crashed into each other in the stupid main hallway, I finally realized that I've been broken inside for a long time, and for some reason I only feel like I'm fixed when I'm with you. I'm crazy for saying this, but I've sat here day after day since school started again and thought about having a life with you. I know we only just met, and you probably think I'm some kind of psycho stalker, but I don't even know what to say. It just felt so right to me, even though it felt so wrong to you." Cosima lifted her gaze from the floor, where it had been resting for some time now, only to be met by the view of her teacher's body, completely wracked by sobs, shaking before her. Through instinct, Cosima hurried over and placed an arm protectively across the blonde's shoulders. "I'm sorry, Delphine." She whispered, remorse woven through her voice "I went too far."

"No, you were right. Merde." The french woman turned her head to look into Cosima's deep brown eyes. "You were so right. I've been a bitch. I can only wish that you'll find it in your heart to forgive me someday." Cosima smirked at this

"Well, even if I don't like you I'm stick with you for two hours every day for at least the next 6 months. I don't really see that there's much point holding a grudge. I suppose it was just a hook up for both of us..." Delphine visibly cringed at this, as if she had tasted something foul. How could Cosima say that? How could their night of passion... of love, been nothing but sex to her?

"No." Delphine muttered quietly, lacking the courage to show the brunette how she really felt about her.

"What?" Cosima asked, thinking that she must have been hearing things. This couldn't be happening. She wasn't lucky enough to have even another hint of a chance with the french woman.  
"I said NO," Dephine repeated, significantly louder this time. "It wasn't like that. I wasn't just using you to fuck and throw away. I don't think you're a silly schoolgirl, I don't think you're crazy for feeling that way about me, and most of all, it's killing me that I can never touch you again."

"I think you can touch me again... If you really wanted to."

"No, I can't, Cosima. You know that I can't." With this, Cosima took her teachers hands and placed them gently on her waist

"Certainly feels like you can." Delphine thought about this for a few moments before curling her fingers around the brunette's waist and using this grip to pull her closer to her.

"You're right." She released in a breathy whisper as Cosima put a hand on the back of her neck and effortlessly pulled her into a passionate. "Stop...Cosima" The french woman breathed, ignored by the brunette, who just began to place desperate open mouthed kisses along the blonde's angled jaw line and down her throat - and on pretty much any skin that was left uncovered by her formal work attire.

"Delphine... Please... Don't" Cosima uttered between her kisses

"No... Cosima... Just... Wait." Delphine begged breathlessly. "Closet... Keys..." She asked, and soon she had Cosima pressed up against the biology closet door while she was blindly fumbling with the keys to let them inside. As soon as the pair crossed the doorway, the door was slammed and latched, and Delphine was pushing her student down unto the old desk in the closet.

* * *

After a good half hour of passionate making out, Delphine had pulled away to begin unbuttoning the brunette's flannel shirt when she began to cry. Just because she knew this was so dangerous for her, but there was no way she could possibly stop - she was without a doubt an addict. It was only half a moment before Cosima noticed these tears. She took the weeping blonde's hands from halfway down her shirt buttons and brought them to her mouth to kiss them. The blonde's head gradually fell to her student's shoulder, where she was consoled and comforted - where she felt safe and loved.

"It's going to be okay, Delphine. We'll work this out. I promise" Cosima whispered, stroking strand after strand of blonde curls.

"We will?" Delphine asked tearfully.

"We will." Cosima affirmed, and the pair stood like that in silence for quite some time, before the sound of Cosima's speech once again broke the nothingness. "Let me stay with you tonight?" She begged, still cradling the blonde, holding on to the french woman for dear life. "Please. Please just let us pretend that we are a normal couple for one day, perhaps over the weekend if you're feeling generous."

"Cosima, you know I can't. If someone catches me..."

"But you will, won't you?" The brunette asked earnestly, so desperate just to spend time with her new lover, acquaint herself with the blonde's life just as well as she knew her body.  
"Yes. Of course." The answer came quietly, accompanied by a cascade of soft, thankful kisses from and to each of them.

"Thank you." Cosima breathed, placing one final, loving kiss on her teacher's lips.


	6. Chapter 6

Something about being in the french woman's apartment made Cosima feel safe; at home. Perhaps it was the feeling of Delphine's arms around her shoulders as she slipped the teenager's coat off her shoulders for her, and hung it on the hook behind the door. Perhaps it was the lazy, passionate and loving kisses peppered on chapped lips across almost every piece of furniture in the place. Perhaps it was waking up next to a dozy french woman, their bodies flush and their limbs tangled. Cosima sighed, knowing that she could not place her finger on why this felt so right, nor could she allow herself to get swept up in the fantasy of a life that in another universe they may have had together - knowing that she could not allow herself to get used to being with the woman she felt so deeply for; had fallen so hard for; loved?

Thankfully, the brunette was pulled out of her spirally thoughts before she was buried in them. She shook her head, ridding herself from any cobwebs of doubt left over, and turned back to face her teacher with a smile.

"Hey." She breathed softly, grinning like a cheshire cat as she used the blonde's cardigan to pull her into yet another kiss. "I missed you." She admitted finally, letting herself fall so her head was on the older woman's lap. She took a moment to just breathe the essence of Delphine.

"Oh, my mouse, I missed you too. So much." The french woman replied, automatically moving her hands to begin stroking the other girl's dreadlocks. She hadn't been far, just to the store to get groceries; Cosima had all but begged to go with her, but both had reluctantly admitted that it was too risky, so the blonde had gone alone, letting the teen sit and ponder her absence. "Do you want to help me put the groceries away?"

"Hmmm" Cosima pretended to think for a while. "No, maybe later."

"Cosima. You know that we will have to do it eventually." The french woman pointed out, gently shooing her student's head from her lap. "Why not now?"

"Delphiiiiine" Cosima whined, pouting. How could Delphine resist those beautiful puppy dog eyes?

"Brat." The french woman laughed in response

"Geriatric." The teen shrugged, moving to straddle the blonde woman's thighs

"Baby, are you accusing me of being an old lady before my time?" Delphine asked, crossing her arms, without thinking. Cosima paused for a second. Baby. Delphine had called her baby, that had to mean something - that she didn't want this to end either. The teenager chose not to think about this now, and snorted.

"Before your time, ha, good one." On hearing this, Delphine put her hand on her heart to fain being shot.

"You wound me, mouse." She laughed, placing a kiss on Cosima's cheek playfully.

"Well, I guess you'll forgive me for that." Cosima said, matter of a factly, lacing her fingers between the older woman's. Delphine snorted.

"And tell me, mouse, why should I do that?"

"Because you love me." Cosima whispered, not thinking. It just slipped out, and as soon as it did, her hands flew to cover her mouth. Delphine chucked at this and prised her hands away. Cosima was almost too embarrassed to look at the french woman - she had gone bright red.

"Yeah, I do." Delphine finished.

"And what the heck are we going to do now?"

"I have no idea."


	7. Chapter 7

"Baby?" Delphine mumbled confusedly, upon waking up to an empty bed, she'd realized that the space beside her was cold. Cosima was gone. "Cosima? Cosima." Delphine gasped, beginning to panic at her... Cosima's... lack of presence. A few moments later, the teen wandered through the bedroom door, flour sprinkled across her nose, with a tray in hand. Delphine beamed when she saw this sight, and calmed down as Cosima perched on the edge of her bed, handing the french woman the tray, with a single Gerbera daisy from Delphine's patio laid beside the cutlery, next to a plate which had, what Delphine supposed was meant to be, a pile of pancakes.

"Merci, ma cherie." Delphine thanked, accompanying her words with a soft kiss to the brunette's temple. She took a mouthful of the food on the plate, immediately regretting it as she grabbed the glass of juice and attempted to wash away the foul taste. "Baby, I didn't realize you were so culinarily inclined..."

"Well, I'm usually not, but you're letting me stay in your sweet digs, so I thought I should make an effort to thank you." Cosima beamed, entwining her fingers with the french woman's.

"Actually, Mouse, I wanted to talk to you about that..." Delphine began, her shoulders tensing, until Cosima squeezed her palm, and she felt a new found assurance spreading through her. "Well, you know the weekend is almost over, and we have to go back to school, back to our lives... I mean, I don't want to _ask_ you to leave, but, well, Mouse, where does your mother think you are?"

"My mom knows where I am, Delphine."

"What? You told her? How could you do something so stupid?"

"What did you just call me? We've been through this before. Stop treating me like a dumb school girl."

"Do you understand what I stand to lose because of you, Cosima?" Delphine asked as Cosima stood up and gathered her stuff.

"Your job, your visa, your freedom. I get it, Del, those things add up to more than I could ever be worth to you." The girl managed through a sea of tears falling down her face, turning away and starting towards the door.

"Cos, wait?" Delphine begged dejectedly, grabbing for the teenager's hand.

"I know. It's over, it has to be." Cosima stated bluntly, never making eye contact with her lover.

"But I love you."

"Do you?"

* * *

Cosima had been gone for a long time, Delphine didn't know if it had been a minute or a decade, just that she had been gone for a long time - too long. Being in this apartment felt so odd without the younger woman's happy presence. She pulled out her phone, her text conversation with Cosima instantly popped up, she scrolled through some of the messages that they had sent each other since Christmas. How could she have been stupid enough to mess this up?

 _Hey_

 _Hey, are you awake_

 _No, Mouse, I was texting you while sleeping_

 _Alright, Sassy Pants. I'm not going to tell you now._

 _Tell me what?_

 _Nothing._

 _Cos, Tell me._

 _Fine, don't freak out or anything, but I love you... So much._

 _Oh, Mouse! Je t'aime._

 _Alright... This is getting way too gay for this time of night. Goodnight, Del._

 _Sweet d_ _reams, Cos._

 _I've changed my mind. I can't sleep without your hair choking me to death._

 _Ne sois pas insolent!_

 _Brat._

 _Je t'aime._

 _I love you too, Del, so much._

Looking through the messages, Delphine couldn't help but let a smile creep across her face at how comfortable they were with each other, even after so few months. The nights that they had spent together had been so few, but seemed so infinite, unfathomable almost. The joy that she found from the teen's touch was immeasurable. She knew it was wrong, she did, but what was the use of living a life that's full of disappointment, just so it's considered right. Yeah, so Cosima was Delphine's student, but she was also a very intelligent, very remarkable and loving woman. How could either of them be expected to live a lie and deny themselves? What was the french woman even waiting for? With a new found courage within her, she allowed her fingers to dart across the keyboard, and before she knew it she had sent a message to her young lover.

 _Cosima, I don't know what's wrong with me. I'm an idiot, I know, but I love you, I know that too. Just, please, come back so we can talk about this?_

She paused after sending that message, dare she modify it with her own will? She pondered this before deciding that life was way too short to pussyfoot around these topics.

 _Cos, come home._

She signified the end of her text with a blunt period, but it didn't feel so blunt when she had poured her very soul into four simple characters - _Home_. By home, Delphine hadn't meant the apartment, or school, or Cosima's family home, she meant her arms, as that was where they both found their own solace. There was no denying it, Cosima truly was Delphine's home, at least the only one that the french woman wanted, and something had to be done to ensure that she would never lose that home.

* * *

It had been hours since Delphine had sent the text, at least it felt like hours, despite the limited number of minutes that had actually passed, and there was still no reply from the teenager. Delphine had spent her waiting time feverishly typing on her computer keyboard when she heard a brisk knock on the door. _Cos_ she thought with a smile, placing her laptop on the coffee table beside her and rushing towards the door. She almost flung it open, revealing a slightly bruised looking Cosima.

"Oh, mouse, what happened to you? Are you okay?" Delphine fussed, placing a strong and reassuring hand on the small of the younger woman's back and ushering her inside.  
"Nothing, Del, I'm fine. I'm so sorry, I've been an idiot."

"No, ma Cherie, what are you talking about, don't be silly. Now what happened?"

"They attacked me, they took my wallet and my phone."

"Who is they?"

"I don't know. I think one of the guys was called Rudy? The other Seth maybe? I don't know, Del, it all happened so fast. I'm just lucky that Mark - a guy I was in AP Physics with in sophomore year was in the area, he pulled them off me and they bolted." and at that point the french woman threw her arms around her love, ignoring the aching pain they were both feeling in their hearts, and just wanting to keep Cosima safe and out of harm's way.

"Je t'aime, mon pauvre petit chiot." the taller woman whispered into a jungle of dreadlocks.

"I love you too, Del, but you're the puppy." It was then that Cosima pulled away from her girlfriend to place a soft, tender kiss on the french woman's lips. It was then when she caught sight of what was on the nearby computer screen. "Uh, Delphine, what the hell is that?"

"What? Oh that." Delphine started, following the younger woman's gaze. "That's my letter of resignation. If I can't teach and be with you, then I choose my life rather than my livelihood."

"Del, no please, you love teaching." This was, of course true, there was only one other thing that gave Delphine the joy that teaching did, and that was the research and experimentation that she had carried out during her years at UPMC, but there was only one thing in the world that she truly loved unconditionally, she had realized this why her lover was gone, and that was Cosima. It was always Cosima, always going to be Cosima above everything.

"No, I like teaching. I love you. I have almost made the mistake of losing you because of my job too many times, I won't be making it again." The french woman replied, without a second's hesitation.

* * *

 **A/N - Oh snap, that would've been such a good way to end this fic, but alas, there is so much of the Teaching Cosima story left to be told. I'm sorry that the updates are infrequent, but remember - what takes you 10 minutes to read takes me 10 hours to plan and write. Remember to review and favourite if you want alerts. ~ R.**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N - Ugh. Where do I even start? I'm so sorry that I've been AWOL for so long. I promise I have a good reason. Soooooooo I've been doing my GCSEs this year (Basically the British equivalent of the SATs), and I've recently started college. Busy busy busy. On with the chapter (let's call this part 1)... Swoooooosh ~ R.**

Delphine sat shaking on a couch. She felt as though she was living in a lucid dream - everything just seemed too real, too detailed. She tried to calm herself by focusing on the notches cut into the door frame, when that didn't work, she began to count the places where the paint had chipped off of the door. Her hands were clammy, and they fumbled on the edge of the yellow couch cushion, her feet tapping restlessly on the floor.

"Del, calm down." Cosima whispered sensually against Delphine's ear. She pulled the french woman's hand into her own and brushed her thumb against her love's knuckles. Delphine turned her head to face the teenager, instantly falling into those deep brown eyes. _Cosima Niehaus_ she smiled to herself, leaning forward to capture the other girl's lips with her own.  
"Oui, mon petit chou," pausing for a moment, she sighed "je suis désolée." She finally answered, leaning her forehead against Cosima's and smiling. She took a moment to breathe in the scent of the teenager, losing herself in the safeness of her.

"Delphine?" Cosima asked, stealing another chaste kiss before sitting back in her seat.

"Oui, mon amour" the french woman answered, her eyes glistening with the love she felt for the other woman.

"I love you so much"

"Je t'aime" Delphine answered without hesitation, forgetting all about the anxiety that she had been feeling just moments earlier.

"And my mom will love you too." Cosima assured her, grinning from ear to ear.

"I'm not so sure, Mouse." Delphine answered, smiling slightly as her love squeezed her hand. It wasn't that the french woman thought ill of Cosima's mother, rather the contrary, she just knew what her approval meant to the teenager. Should Ms Niehaus force Cosima to acknowledge the illegitimacy of their love, should she question the integrity of the french woman, it would easily break her heart, and she honestly didn't know who Cosima would choose if it came to it. "I hope so." She whispered, almost to herself. As if on cue, Cosima's mother burst through the kitchen door and into the living room.

"Cosima, love, I'm home" She failed to notice the French woman, never looking up from the grocery store catalogue she was holding. "Guess what? Wal-Mart is having a sale on Jumbo tampons. Do you need some? We all know what you get like when you're on the rag." The brunette giggled to herself as she continued to flick through pages of the catalogue. Cosima leapt off of the couch, ready to chastise her mother for the blush she felt burning on her cheeks.

"MOM!" the teenager almost screamed, holding her head in anger "JEEZ, READ THE ROOM, WOMAN." Ms Niehaus looked up for the first time since entering the room. she finally saw the French woman on her couch and she smiled. Delphine finally saw where Cosima's unfathomable beauty came from. Although her mother was older, and Delphine felt no romantic attraction for her, she shared the same smile and the same deep brown eyes and unruly hair as her daughter. They may not be genetically related, but nobody could doubt the relationship between the Niehaus women.

"h-hello, Ms Niehaus, my name is Delph-" the French woman struggled to speak in her second language for the first time since meeting Cosima, but was cut off before her spluttering English could continue by a thick Irish accent and long arms wrapping her in a bone crushing hug.  
"Delphine, love, please call me Siobhan." The Irish woman requested, leaning backwards to face the blonde. "It's nice to finally meet you. I thought my daughter was never going to bring this great love of hers home." Delphine blushed as the Irish woman shot her daughter a death glare. Cosima just giggled, rolling her eyes.

"Mom, I was protecting her from you. I think you should let her go now, she can't breathe." Cosima joked, but her mother did release the French woman, choosing to playfully slap the teenager about the head instead. Delphine breathed out, her smile growing quickly as she watched the two brunette's chase each other around the room. Siobhan had somehow acquired a dish towel from somewhere and was trying to whip Cosima with it, while the younger Niehaus was trying to hide behind an armchair in the far corner of the room. The French woman wasn't used to seeing such intimacy between a parent and their child. Her own parents were not exactly cruel, but she found them to be cold and reserved, particularly for the French. Delphine began to laugh at the antics taking place before her and just moments later she was pulled down behind the armchair by Cosima, the brunette had a look of war upon her beautiful features.

"Del, it's us or her. You have to be on my side. This is war." The blonde woman giggled at how quickly the situation had escalated, and she wondered whether this kind of thing happened regularly in the Niehaus household, assuming it did based on how seriously her girlfriend was taking it. They peaked their eyes over the top of the armchair, Siobhan had apparently gone back into the kitchen and retrieved a further dish towel, now wielding two of them like swords. "Ahhhhh" Cosima mock-screamed "Delphine! GET HER!" She ordered the French woman, who merely scoffed in reply.  
"Nuh uh, Mouse. I think I should really be on Siobhan's side, I am trying to get her to like me after all."

"Del, no!" Cosima exclaimed, but her shouts were futile. The French woman wrestled the brunette to the floor easily, pinning her arms against the carpet deviously. The French woman giggled an adorable giggle again, and stuck her tongue out, beginning to try to lick her girlfriend's nose. The teenager resisted, turning her head away.  
"Help. No. Traitor." She shouted, wriggling under Delphine. She admired the French woman for not being perturbed by the immature play fight, and she smiled inwardly at her love. Just as Delphine managed to brush her tongue against the brunette's nose, the older Niehaus found them, jumping over the entire armchair as she let out a Tarzan-esque battle cry. She landed deftly beside her daughter and the French woman, taking in the sight before her.

"Uh, Ms Niehaus, this is not what it looks like, I swear to you." A bewildered Delphine promised, turning a shade of scarlet as she tried to explain what was happening to the older woman.

"Oh, because it looks like you're trying to immobilize my daughter so we can win this fine battle." Siobhan answered, giggling at Delphine's fear, before both of them nodded at each other and their attacks on the teenager ensued, amidst Cosima's playful cries of "Help" and "Traitors".

After a while of fighting, the three of them collapsed into fits of laughter, Delphine still straddling the teenager's thighs. Siobhan noticed the love that her daughter and the blonde woman shared, and it made her happy to know that her daughter was able to find something wonderful in a world that was constantly trying to tear her down. There was a niggling feeling of sadness at her own heartbreak, and some doubt of how long these feelings would last between them, but she did her best to banish them.

"Right. I can't sit here all day. I'll get started on dinner. Delphine, do you like stew, love?" Siobhan asked.

"Yes, thank you so much for inviting me into your home." The blonde answered politely. The Irish woman chuckled to herself and ruffled the younger woman's curls as she stood up and disappeared into the kitchen.

"Come on, Del, let me show you my room" Cosima sat up and placed a surprisingly passionate kiss on her girlfriend's lips.

"Oui, mon amour" Delphine smiled, standing up and grabbing the younger girl's hand. She allowed the brunette to lead her upstairs and into her bedroom.

* * *

The room was covered wall to wall with science and band posters, with a bookshelf in the far corner full with trophies and certificates from the various science fairs, camps and academic decathlons that the brunette had taken part in, and inevitably won. The floor was carpeted in blue, and was relatively immaculate, the desk was very tidy too and featured the brunette's laptop, as well as a notebook and some pens and pencils. In the middle of the room was Cosima's bed. It was huge, almost the size of Delphine's entire bedroom. On top of the bed were white sheets and a white and blue comforter. The light colors in the room added to the cleanliness of it all, which actually surprised Delphine - she had always assumed that the brunette's room would be more dark and dingy. She was actually happy to see this side of Cosima, playful but mature. She hoped that the brunette would one day, in years to come, be this way with their kids.

Delphine was surprised when Cosima led her to the bed and laid her down upon it. The brunette proceeded to climb atop the French woman, straddling her waist as she leaned down for passionate kisses. Before long, their hands began to roam around eachother's bodies, and garments were flying around the room, neither of them caring that dinner would soon be ready and they would have to make a reappearance downstairs. The French woman grew breathless as she clasped her hand around her love's waist, nibbling on her shoulder and whispering sentiments of love. They were both clad only in their underwear, and neither of them intended to stay that way for much longer. All of a sudden, Delphine flipped them over so she was on top of the brunette. She began to kiss slowly, languidly down the younger woman's front, focusing only on her soft skin and the scent of her. Cosima moaned involuntarily as her hands found their way into Delphine's blonde curls, listening to her professions of love and answering them with her own breathless promises. Gradually, Delphine found her way to the younger woman's hips and kissed their curve, running her fingers between them

"Ma belle souris, je t'aime." She moaned, placing another kiss on the soft curve "J'adore tes hanches" She let her hands wander further down, spreading the brunette's legs and kissing her inner thigh hungrily. "J'adore tes cuisses" Cosima moaned as she was kissed, almost bucking her hips but managing to restrain herself. Delphine looked up, a wide smile on her lips. Cosima lifted the French woman's face to meet her own.

"I love you. Please, don't leave me."

"Mon amour," Delphine chuckled, brushing a dread out of her love's face, "Pourquoi? Why would I leave you?"

"I don't know, everyone always has before."

"Non, ma cherie. Jamais, never."

"Thank you." Cosima answered finally, letting her girlfriend kiss her slowly, allowing the kiss to convey all of the emotion that they felt for each other. She felt safe with Delphine, finally safe enough with anybody that she would allow her tears to fall during that kiss. The tears that were years of pent up emotion finally escaping her.

"I love you, Cosima. I promise I will never be stupid enough to leave you." Delphine assured her, kissing away the tears on Cosima's cheeks.

"So," Cosima began, knowing in that moment that she had to ask. Knowing in her gut what she had wished for all alone. "Marry me?" Delphine was speechless, not knowing what to say or do. She knew what they both wanted, what would make them both happy.

"Ma souris..." Her reply was lost in a bout of passionate kissing and the subsequent love making. They both allowed themselves to lose everything in this, focusing only on the objective of displaying their love to eachother.

They were deeply enthralled in eachother when Siobhan burst through the door, having a clear view of both of their naked bodies. Cosima quickly grabbed a blanket, shielding a frightened Delphine from further humiliation. She never once, however, let go of the hand she was holding, only clasping it further to her chest.

"Dinner will be ready in a few minutes. Delphine, could you please get dressed and come downstairs. I think we have something to talk about, don't you?"

"Mom, we will be downstairs soon, I'm so sorry." It was Cosima who answered.

"Now, Miss Cormier, and alone please." Siobhan was cold for the first time towards the French woman, as she turned around and left the room, slamming the door closed behind her. Leaving a humiliated, sobbing Delphine picking up her discarded clothes.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N - I'm really anxious to write for this fic today. Please leave any comments/reviews and have a nice day ~ R**

Delphine and Siobhan sat opposite each other at the kitchen table. Siobhan's glare was hard and unforgiving, while the French woman's eyes were puffy from the tears she was holding back.  
"Look, love," Siobhan finally spoke, her features softening slightly "I'm not against this. I'm happy that Cosima is happy." She reached her hand across the table and rested it atop of Delphine's folded arms. "I just don't want anything getting in the way of her future."

"Ms Niehaus, I swear to you-" Delphine started, unsure of where she was going, but hoping to defuse the situation somehow.

"No, Delphine. Let me speak." The Irish woman cut her off "I know Cosima loves you, or at least she thinks she loves you." Delphine felt as though she had taken a physical blow from the older woman. What had happened to the Siobhan who had been playing with the girls just an hour ago? "But, this isn't the first time."

"Wha-what?" Delphine questioned, her heart racing. There had been others for Cosima? Surely not _her_ Cosima. Surely the teenager couldn't have shared what they had with anybody else. "Ce n'est pas vrai." She whispered, allowing a single tear to fall.

"Cosima never told you about Shay?" Siobhan asked, beginning to feel sorry for the blonde before her.

"Non." Delphine replied simply, shaking her head as she spoke.

"They ran away together last year, got halfway to Vegas hoping to have a shotgun wedding." And at that, Delphine's heart dropped 50 floors deep. It couldn't be. It just couldn't.

"Oh." Was all that she could manage, her head spinning at the revelation.

"I know how you feel about my daughter, and I hope that you stay together, I really do. You need to remember, though, that you're her teacher. I might turn a blind eye, but we all know that this relationship is wholly inappropriate. Mark my words, it will all end in tears." It hurt Siobhan to speak to the French woman like this. Although they had only just met, the older woman was fond of her, and she was so thankful for the smiles and grins that had been appearing on her daughters face since the meeting. Cosima, really, had been like a broken record: all she could talk about was 'the new teacher', 'Miss Cormier' and, inevitably 'Delphine.' "I don't know what you are looking to gain from Cosima, but she has to focus on college. What do you hope will happen for you both in the future? You really think that a young girl is going to stay loyal to you forever? Come on, Delphine." The French woman felt both distraught and deeply offended. She managed, however, to gain a stiff upper lip and nod in understanding at the older woman.  
"I think it would be best if I left." She spoke finally, standing from her chair and picking up her jacket from the back of it.  
"No, love. Stay for dinner, eh?" Siobhan offered. Delphine closed her eyes, sighed and nodded respectfully, taking her coat off again. "Could you go and fetch Cosima? Dinner will be on the table when you get back." Delphine nodded in agreement, breathing deeply and fighting back the tears as she hurried through the living room to the stairs. She ascended quickly, allowing her tears to fall only when she was back in the confines of Cosima's bedroom.

"Del? Are you okay? What happened?" Cosima questioned her in rapid succession, wrapping her arms protectively around the French woman as the now feeble blonde collapsed in a heap of body wracking sobs and cascading tears. "It's okay." Cosima promised, prompting Delphine to stiffen in her arms.  
"Cosima..." The French woman finally spoke, breaking the silence that had fallen on the room. "Who is Shay?" Cosima was speechless. She had kept her great love affair with Shay a secret from Delphine because she didn't matter anymore, none of it did. All that mattered was how Cosima felt about Delphine, and how Delphine felt about Cosima.

"Shay was nobody, nothing. She doesn't matter to me. I don't care about her, I don't care about any of it. I swear to you."

"Why would you not tell me?"

"I didn't see the point. I told you, it doesn't matter."

"Of course it matters, Cosima." Their discussion started to become more heated as Delphine raised her voice.

"Del, I love you. I didn't want you to see me as an immature idiot."

"But that is who you are, isn't it? I mean, you thought you loved her, but now you say you don't. Who knows what you might think of me in a year's time."

"Stop it. Don't be silly. I love you, we are going to be together for the rest of our lives. I know that, I can feel it," She grabbed the French woman's chest and placed it on her chest, just above her heart. "in here." Delphine's sobs started again as Cosima did this. She felt the brunette's heart beating a mile a minute under her touch, and she could tell that they were linked somehow, no matter what anybody else said.

"Brat." Delphine accused, lifting the smaller woman up and pushing her against the wall, her lips latching onto the brunette's neck.

"Del, let's go home tonight, after my mom cooks us dinner. Let's just get baked and be together." She pulled a head of blonde locks up to meet her and kissed her girlfriend's soft lips. "I love you, let's just be together tonight. Forget about the world hmmm?" Delphine nodded, a watery smile on her face.

"Oui, please." Delphine answered, kissing her girlfriend deeply. "Je t'aime, souris." She finally let the brunette down, placing another quick kiss on her lips as they locked their hands and walked downstairs. They each felt renewed in their love for each other. Each of them knew that they were serious about the other and that this was going to last. They may face challenges, they certainly would with their current predicament as teacher and student, and with Cosima going away to college soon and Delphine surely about to lose her job, it wouldn't be easy. They would get through it, though, because they had to.

Delphine, however, spent almost the entirety of dinner in utter silence, contemplating her answer to the question that her love had asked her earlier that evening. Would she marry Cosima, or should they wait? She had a lot to think about, but gradually, the answer grew less foggy in her mind.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N - I'm really into writing for OB at the moment. I've been rewatching it, so that's probably why. Here I am with another chapter... I have a feeling you're going to hate me after this, but please keep reading! Cophine is love, Cophine is life, and Cophine is definitely endgame! Check out my soccercop fanfiction if you're into that stuff. ~ R.**

"Cosima?" The teenager heard as she was wandering through the halls of her high school. It had been 2 weeks since Delphine had met her mom, and they were still going strong. Delphine had promised to cook dinner for Cosima after school, but the teenager was yet to receive a key to her teacher's apartment, so she was stuck here until the French woman was done with her department meetings. "COSIMA" The voice called again, bringing Cosima out of her own thoughts. She spun around to reveal a short blonde girl wearing a fedora hat standing in front of her. She was taken aback by the figure of Shay in front of her, unable to speak for a few moments.  
"Shay... what are you doing here?" Cosima questioned as the other girl pulled her into a hug.  
"I've transferred for senior year," She started, allowing the brunette to pull out of the decidedly awkward embrace. "my dad got stationed in Oakland, so here I am." She smiled at Cosima, biting her lip flirtatiously. Cosima was stunned by the blonde's appearance. They hadn't seen eachother since Mardi Gras the previous year, all Cosima had had to remember her former love by were the feathers and glitter covering her glasses. Finding them the first day she met Delphine was so painful, but now she was left with nothing but a dull ache when thinking of Shay. In the last 3 months she had grown closer to the older French woman than she ever had with Shay in the years that they had known each other.  
"That's really great, Shay. We should get coffee one day after school." Cosima offered. She would be lying if she said that she hadn't missed Shay's friendship. They had been relatively close, and had known each other since they were small children. She may not love the small blonde, but that didn't mean they couldn't seek some kind of bond.  
"I'd like that" Shay giggled with a wink in Cosima's direction. "Give me your phone and I'll put my number into it." Cosima quickly obliged, and as she took her phone back she heard the door to the teacher's lounge opening, and the teachers beginning to flood out.  
"I'm really sorry, Shay, but I have to go." Cosima apologised, beginning her walk towards the Science building, where she knew she would find Delphine.  
"Oh? Where are you going?"  
"I have French tutoring after school most days with Miss Cormier." She explained quickly, "I'm sorry. I really have to go now." And with that, the brunette almost ran towards her girlfriend.

When she reached the classroom Cosima slowed down, and finally looked at the number Shay had put into her phone. It was labelled as 'Pookie Bear'. Cosima visibly cringed at the former nickname just as Delphine met her in the corridor.  
"Cherie? What's wrong?" Delphine asked, rushing towards her student and pulling her into a warm, soft embrace.  
"Uh.. nothing. I just met an old friend in the corridor." Cosima answered vaguely.  
"Oh? Which friend?" Delphine asked, wrapping her arm around the shorter girl.  
"Shay." Cosima answered, almost with a whisper.  
"Shay?" Delphine asked, concerned about why the former lovers were spending time together now.  
"Baby, don't worry about it, just take me home okay?" Cosima asked, laying soft, secret kisses on Delphine's knuckles.  
"Okay." Delphine agreed, leading Cosima out of the corridor and to her car.

* * *

Cosima was sat, once again, on the couch that felt like home to her watching _her_ Delphine cook them dinner. The French woman was so beautiful from behind, her figure seemed to be carved from stone or sculpted painstakingly to look just so... ravishing. Cosima got up as if she had no control over her body, walked over to Delphine and wrapped her arms around the larger women's waist.  
"I love you, Miss Cormier" Cosima whispered against Delphine's back  
"I love you too, ma cherie" Delphine answered, craning her neck to kiss the younger woman. "Dinner is almost ready, Souris, would you set the table?" Cosima nodded and kissed Delphine's back before going to the kitchen drawer and pulling out cutlery. When she got to the dining room the table was covered in kid's term papers from school, and she laughed as she saw hers on the top of the pile. Delphine had obviously daydreamed about them while marking the paper, because there was a border of hearts surrounding her name and sections of the text on the page. She made a mental note to print another copy of it, and slipped the adorned paper into her bag. She set the table quickly before sitting down and fidgeting from side to side, waiting for Delphine to bring in the food. Her phone buzzed in her cardigan pocket. Shay. She read the message quickly, checking after every few words that Delphine couldn't see her from the kitchen.  
 _"Hey, sexy, it's Shay. I have my first field hockey practice tonight, and I was just wondering if you would be up for a little post-game analysis afterwards. Let me know, okay babe? Love forever - Your Pookie Bear."_ the message read. There was that nickname again. It made Cosima feel dirty, but it's not like she could tell Shay about her relationship with the new French teacher. Cosima wanted to tell Shay no, but this was just how the little blonde girl operated. Nobody could tell if she was flirting or just talking, Cosima assured herself that she had nothing to worry about before typing out her reply  
 _"I'm sorry, S's mom is coming over tonight, I have to make sure that mom and Kendall don't rip eachother to shreds. You should ask Ali or Sarah, they're on the team so they can probably help you a lot more than me - Cosima."_ Her reply was much more formal than Shay's original message. She hoped this would help the other girl get the hint. Just as she hit send, Delphine walked in, carrying two plates with tremendous mounds of pasta piled upon them. It looked delicious, and as Delphine laid the plates down on the table, turning to kiss Cosima, the younger girl's stomach rumbled very loudly. In all honesty, the brunette wasn't sure whether it was the food or Delphine that she was hungry for. She licked her lips slightly before sitting down and tucking in, deciding that dinner must come before any... unscheduled extra-curricular activities.  
"Wow, baby, this is delicious."  
"Thank you, Souris, it's a French peasant dish, nothing fancy."  
"Maybe it's just the beautiful French woman who served me then..." Cosima offered coyly.  
"You know, suddenly I'm not so hungry." Delphine pondered, leaning closer to her girlfriend over the table.  
"Oh? Me neither."  
"Yeah, I'll make you something later." Delphine answered finally, standing up and swiping everything off the table with a flourish before almost leaping onto Cosima, giggling as they fell into eachother, going to town on one another on top of the dining room table. Neither had a second thought about the tomato stains now on the rug, nor did either of them wish they had eaten first. After all, rules are made to be broken.


End file.
